Sheet dispensing carton



June 16, 1959 A, N 2,890,791

SHEET DISPENSING CARTON Filed Jan. 9, 1958 IN VEN TOR.

FeEoEe/cK 4. WENZEL United States Patent SHEET DISPENSING CARTONFrederick A. Wenzel, Milwaukee, Wis., assignor to Cornell PaperboardProducts Co., Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin ApplicationJanuary 9, 1958, Serial No. 707,887

Claims. (Cl. 206-57) This invention relates to a sheet dispensingcarton.

Certain dispensing cartons for successively delivered paper sheetscurrently on the market are provided with top opening slots throughwhich the sheets are dispensed, the dispensing of one sheet carryingtherewith a portion of the next sheet which projects through the slot ina partially dispensed position where it is accessible to be grasped bythe user in the next dispensing operation. Such cartons areconventionally provided for paper handkerchiefs, facial tissue, meatwrapping parchment sheets, etc.

Where the carton is relatively deep and the sheet content thereof hasbeen almost entirely dispensed, the unsupported weight of the partiallydispensed sheets may tend to pull them by gravity back through the slotand into relatively inaccessible position within the carton.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a novel sheet lockwhich will interengage with partially dispensed sheets to hold suchsheets against falling by gravity away from the slot and intoinaccessible position within the carton. For this purpose I providesheet locking flaps at opposite sides of the slot which mutuallyconverge in overlapping relation to engage the partially dispensed sheettherebetween. One of such flaps functions as a slot closure prior toopening the carton. The other flap is desirably laminated to the cartontop and prior to opening the carton laps the closure flap. In thepreferred embodiment of the invention the lapping flap is beneath theclosure flap and is slightly shorter than the length of the dispensingslot so that it may ultimately project upwardly therethrough.

In the blank from which the carton is made the panel in which thedispensing slot and its closure are formed and the panel on which thelapping flap is formed are at opposite ends of a series of hingedlyconnected panels adapted to be folded to form the carton.

Other objects, advantages and features of the invention will appear fromthe following disclosure in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the blank from which the carton is folded.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the blank of Figure 1 in the course offolding it into a carton.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the completed carton and showing thedispensing slot flaps in erected position.

Figure 4 is a cross section through a carton embodying the invention anddiagrammatically illustrating the sheet interlocking function of thedispensing slot flaps.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary cross section showing the dispensing slotflaps prior to opening the carton.

Figure 6 is a view similar to that shown in Figure 5, but showing thedispensing slot flaps after the carton has been opened.

The sheet dispenser of the present invention comprises in the blank 8shown in Fig. 1 panels 10, 11, 12 and 13 serially and hingedly connectedon crease lines 9. In the erected carton, panel 13 comprises a top wall,panels 12 and 10 form side walls and panel 11 forms a bottom wall. Therespective panels are also provided with end flaps indicatedcollectively by reference character 14. These may be folded in, asillustrated in the drawings, to complete end closures for the carton.

Top panel 13 is creased along the line 15 and is cut along the parallelline 16 and also along the transverse end lines 17 to define a closureflap 18 for dispensing slot 19. The cut lines 16, 17 may optionally beprovided with breakable fiber connections 22 to temporarily hold theflap 18 in closed position pending opening the carton.

Side panel 10 which is at the opposite end of the series ofinterconnected panels from top panel 13 is provided with a flap 23 whichin the assembled carton underlies the marginal portion 24 of the top 13between cut line 16 and the free edge of panel 13.

The flap 23 is provided with a crease line 25 on which extension flap 36is hinged. The extension flap 26 is somewhat narrower than dispenserslot closure flap 18 and in the assembled position of the cartonpartially underlies flap 18, as illustrated in Figure 5. The extensionflap 26 is just slightly shorter than slot 19 so that when the carton isopened, as shown in Figures 3, 4 and 6, it may be drawn by the usersfingers upwardly through the opening 19 to converge toward the flap 18.

When the respective flaps 18, 26 are erected as shown in Figures 3, 4and 6, they function as a sheet lock to hold the partially dispensedsheets 27 against falling by gravity away from the slot 19 and into thecarton, this being diagrammatically illustrated in Figure 4.Accordingly, even though most of the box contents has been dispensed,and accordingly oifers no support for the partially dispensed sheets,the flaps 18, 26 will interlock with the partially dispensed sheets tohold them against dropping by gravity into the carton. The free edge offlap 26 tends to press the sheets 27 against the under surface of theclosure flap 18. Both flaps 18 and 26 tend to be biased towardinterlocking engagement with the sheets by the inherent resilience oftheir hinged connections on crease lines 15 and 25 to the panels 13, 23.

To open the carton the fiber connections 22 are broken with thethumbnail or the like, and the closure flap 18 is erected. Inasmuch asthe lapping flap 26 is narrower than the closure flap 18, there is now agap between the free edge of flap 26 and the crease line 15 on which theclosure flap 18 is hinged to the top panel 13, thus to allow the usersfingers into the carton and beneath the lapping flap 26 to permit theuser to swing the flap 26 upwardly through the slot 19 and to itsposition shown in Figures 3, 4 and 6 in which it cooperates with theflap 18 as aforestated.

The plies 23, 24 of the carton top are preferably laminated by gluing,the flap 26, however, remaining unglued to permit separation therefromof slot closure flap 18.

The sheets 27 desirably comprise parallel webs with staggered lines ofperforations to facilitate dividing the webs into discrete sheets afterthey have been withdrawn through the slot.

I claim:

1. A dispensing carton having a top opening dispensing slot for sheetcontents tending to fall by gravity away from said slot and toward aninaccessible position within the carton, and a sheet lock comprisingoverlapping carton flaps respectively hinged to the carton top atopposite sides of the slot and respectively projecting towardinterengagement with a sheet projecting through the slot to hold thesheet against gravity withdrawal through said slot, said carton topcomprising laminated upper and lower plies, one of said flaps beinghinged to the upper ply and the other flap being hinged to the lowerply, said other flap being shorter than the slot whereby to projectupwardly therethrough.

2. A dispensing carton comprising a top having a dispensing slot and aslot closure hinged to the top at one side of the slot, a bottom andside walls, one of said side walls having a flap underlying the cartontop and having a marginal flap portion beneath the slot in the cartontop, said marginal flap portion being hinged to said flap for upwardprojection through said slot.

3. The device of claim 2 in which said marginal flap portion is shorterthan the slot to clear the ends thereof.

4. A blank for a sheet dispensing carton of the character described andcomprising a series of hingedly connected panels adapted to be folded toform a carton, one of the end panels of said series being provided witha dispensing slot spaced from the free edge of said panel and the otherend panel of the series being provided with a flap adapted to lap themarginal portion of said one end panel between its free edge and theslot and having a marginal flap portion hinged thereto and adapted to befolded on said hinge to project through said slot.

5. The device of claim 4 in which said one end panel has a slot closurehinged to said panel at the side of the slot opposite its free edge,said closure forming with said marginal flap portion a lock for sheetspartially dispensed through said slot.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,519,261 Lorrance Aug. 15, 1950 2,598,050 Guyer May 27, 1952 2,802,567Covel Aug. 13, 1957

